Page 116 of Broken Pieces

A month ago, Brooks and I decided we should move off the property. Summer was getting so many wedding requests and she needed more room for guests. I was the one that came up with the idea of turning the cottage into the bridal suite. Summer loved it.

Brooks and I found a quaint house halfway between town and the farm. Perfect distance between his job and the new bakery Ivy and I planned to open in the next year. I was the exclusive baker for Summer’s weddings. And until we got the space up and running, I was splitting my time between the diner and the farm.

Easton is waiting outside the door of the courtroom. A smile lighting up my face as he looks at me. “I never thought I would be walking you down the aisle, Raely.”

I hug him as I say, “There is no one I would rather give me away than you, East.”

He places a kiss on my forehead. Summer and Harper head into the room and Easton and I follow, my arm wrapped around his.

It’s only a small ceremony. Just Summer, Brett, Easton, Harper, Tacoma, Mac, Ivy, and Trace. The ones that played a pivotal role in our relationship.

As I walk through the door and look at Brooks, I nearly melt to the floor. I’ve always thought he was handsome. But today he looks completely different. He’s wearing dress pants and a dark green button-down shirt with a black tie. His brown hair is slicked back, and his scruff shaved neatly. His eyes bore into mine as I walk down the short aisle. Our eyes never leaving each other’s.

Easton gives me a quick kiss on the cheek as he places my hand in Brooks’ hand. “She’s all yours,” he says, tears cresting his eyes.

I hold on to Brooks, smiling at him as he squeezes my hand whispering an I love you into my ear.

The officiant starts the short ceremony. When it comes to our vows, I start them.

“Brooks, you told me once that we were the perfect storm and I wasn’t sure that was a good thing or not. But I see it now. Just like I see you. I see everything inside of you that should make you feel broken, but you’re not. Because I helped you find those broken pieces and put them together again. Just like you did for me.

“Our love wasn’t easy when it started out. Hell, we weren’t easy when we started out. We were fire and ice, thunder and lightning. We were building a storm that neither of us saw coming and I wouldn’t change it for the world.

“You are everything I never knew I needed. And now that I have you, I know I can never let you go. You are the frosting on my cupcakes, the chocolate chips in my cookies. I can’t go one day without seeing you and I don’t ever want there to be a day when I can’t love you. This is our forever.”

Brooks wipes away a tear before he pulls me into him and tells me he loves me, kissing my forehead.

He clears his throat before he starts speaking, not letting me go. He holds me tightly, his words quiet, I am not sure anyone else can hear, but it doesn’t matter. “Blue, you stole my line. I might be the frosting on your cupcakes, but you will always be my blueberry pie.”

Everyone chuckles at that and I blush as he winks at me.

“You took my breath away the first time I saw you. And every time after that. I tried to push you away, but your pull was too strong, a rip curl under a wave I couldn’t get free of. I needed to know who you were on the inside of your rough exterior. I needed to know everything about you. And I slowly found out. And that need to keep you safe turned into a need to have you.

“You swept me off my feet. Your siren song pulled me into deep waters. But I would have swum to the bottom of the ocean to find you. You make me a better man. You make me want to be someone you will be proud of. And I never had anyone make me feel that way in my life before. But then you happened. Yes, it was hard and rough, but I would travel down worse paths if it meant you would be at the end.

“I love you. I love every piece of your soul. The ugly ones you keep hidden from the world and the pieces you let shine bright. Together we made ourselves whole and without you, I would be a waste of a man. But when we found each other, we found a love that can’t be duplicated. A love that I can’t wait to share with you for a lifetime. For forever.”

I try to hold my composure as he speaks, but every word makes me fall more in love with him.

We exchange rings and the officiant announces us husband and wife.

He holds me closely as we share our first kiss as a married couple.

“Are you ready for forever, Blue?” he asks as he pulls his mouth from mine. His whiskey eyes alight with fire.

“Through every storm.”

The End